Errol Kennedy (born 9 June 1953 in

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Por ...

, Jamaica) is a Jamaican-British musician (drummer, singer), songwriter, composer, producer and original member of the British soul,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and pop band

Imagination Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations ...

Career

Kennedy learned to play drums at a young age. Before co-founding the British three-piece soul, pop and funk band Imagination with Ashley Ingram and

Leee John Leslie McGregor "Leee" John (born 23 June 1957) is a British musician, singer, and actor of St Lucian descent. He was born in Hackney, London, and educated in New York City, later studying drama at the Anna Scher Theatre School. He is perhaps b ...

in London in early 1981, he was a member in two other soul-funk bands, Midnight Express and TFB/Central Line (Typical Funk Band). Imagination's first UK hit single, " Body Talk", produced by

Jolley & Swain Steven Nicholas Jolley (born April 1950) and Tony Swain (born 20 January 1952, London, England) were a successful songwriting and record production duo in the United Kingdom in the early to mid-1980s, producing some of the top artists and son ...

, spent 18 weeks on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and reached number 4 in May 1981. This was quickly followed by two other top 20 hit singles, "In and Out of Love" and "Flashback", both co-written by Kennedy. Their biggest hit, "

Just an Illusion "Just an Illusion" is a song by the British trio Imagination. Co-written by Steve Jolley, Tony Swain, Ashley Ingram and Leee John, the song was a major European hit, peaking at number 2 in the group's native UK. In the United States, "Just an ...

", peaked at number two in March 1982. The trio frequently appeared on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'' and other pop music programmes. After the break-up of Imagination, Kennedy continued both as a musician and producer. He worked with

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for ...

at Bray Film Studios to produce the soundtrack for the film ''Soweto'', and during the 1990s either toured or produced with bands such as

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major Ancient Greek literature, ancient Greek Epic poetry, epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by moder ...

Shalamar Shalamar () is an American R&B and soul music vocal group active since the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Shalamar's classic line-up on the SOLAR label consisted of Howard Hewett, Jody Watley, and Jeffrey Daniel, together with dancer ...

Rose Royce Rose Royce is an American soul and R&B group. They are best known for several hit singles during the 1970s including "Car Wash", " I Wanna Get Next to You", " I'm Going Down", "Wishing on a Star", and "Love Don't Live Here Anymore". Career Th ...

, Grace Kennedy,

Jamiroquai Jamiroquai () are an English funk and acid jazz band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in the ...

Frankie Knuckles Francis Warren Nicholls, Jr. (January 18, 1955 – March 31, 2014), better known as Frankie Knuckles, was an American DJ, record producer and remixer. He played an important role in developing and popularizing house music in Chicago during the 1 ...

Larry Levan Larry Levan (; born Lawrence Philpot, July 20, 1954 – November 8, 1992) was an American DJ best known for his decade-long residency at the New York City night club Paradise Garage, which has been described as the prototype of the modern da ...

, Arthur Baker,

Colonel Abrams Colonel Abrams (May 25, 1949 – November 24, 2016) was an American musician, singer, songwriter, dancer and actor. Early life Colonel Abrams (his real name) was born in Detroit, Michigan. His family later moved to East 13 Street, in Manhattan's ...

and Simon Ellis. Since 2009, Kennedy has been performing live on stage with his band ImagiNation feat. Errol Kennedy. They toured the UK in 2010–2011, followed by a performance at London's

IndigO2 The O2 is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars, and restaurants. It was built largely within ...

alongside the

Three Degrees The Three Degrees is an American female vocal group formed circa 1963 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although 16 women have been members over the years, the group has always been a trio. The current line-up consists of Helen Scott, Valerie Holi ...

and

Linda Lewis Linda Ann Fredericks (born 27 September 1950), better known as Linda Lewis, is an English vocalist, songwriter and guitarist. She is the eldest of six children, three of whom also had singing careers. She is best known for the singles " Rock-a ...

, as well as various events and festivals across Germany in 2012. Kennedy released Imagination's official 30th anniversary single "Just an Illusion" (featuring T'Mar) on M&R Records in May 2013, which is a re-production of Imagination's biggest hit. The single was taken from the forthcoming anniversary album, ''New Dimension'', released later that year. In 2016, Kennedy released the new track "You Can Be (All You Want to Be)" on 29 April, which is featured on his compilation album ''Greatest Hits (Live)''. Kennedy has also broadened his talents as the author of ''Flying Machines and Their Heroes'', a series that brings some of the greatest stories in aviation history.

References

External links

Official Website of Imagination and ImagiNation ft.EK "Biography by Andy Kellman"
allmusic.com. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
Music. BBC.
bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
Denbighshire Entertainment News
denbighshirevisitor.com. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
Edp24 What's On
edp24.co.uk. Retrieved 11 January 2013. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Errol 1953 births Living people People from Montego Bay Black British musicians British male drummers British rhythm and blues musicians British soul musicians English boogie musicians English dance musicians English funk musicians English record producers Imagination (band)